Improvement in nail-plate feeders



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W H FIE L D.

Wimesses: Invent r: g fif away Per i f Attorneys.

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- Q Nail-Plate Feeder N0.l4%924. Patented April21,1874,

Ii um I w um ATTORNEYS.

UNITED ST TES PATENT QFFICE.

WILLIAM H. FIELD, OF TAUNTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN NAIL-PLATE FEEDERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 149,924, dated April21, 1874: appli ati n filed January 24, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. FIELD, of

Taunton, in the county of Bristol and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented a new and Improved Machine for Feeding Nail-Plates, of whichthe following is a specification! In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1represents a sectional top view of my improved machine for feedingnail-plates; Fig. 2, a secand the gear-Wheels for imparting thenecessary motion to the feeding and cutting mechanisms, are arranged.The main shaft B turns in suitable bearings of the main frame and of thefeed-supporting frame A which extends forward and carries at its end thelateral standard A to which the guide-barrel, with the rotatingmechanism. of the nipper-rod, is pivoted. The main shaft B may be thrownout of gear by means of a spring clutch, 13 which is operated by atreadle chain and pulley, B The driving-shaft imparts in asuitablemanner circularreciprocating motiontothe main shaft B, whichtransmits again, by crankdisk a and pivoted connecting-rod b,reciprocating motion to the pivoted nipper-rod barrel G, and also, byits end crank d and levers c, spring-pawls f, ratchet cog-wheel g, andpinion g, rotary motion to the nipper-rod D. The forward feeding of thenipper-rod I) is produced byan end swivel, h, which is con nected by arope or chain, h, passing over a loose pulley, W, of barrel 0, with aweight of suflicient size, in the manner generally in use innail-plate-feeding machines. For the purpose of inserting the nail-plateE into the nippers or jaws E at the front end of nipper-rod D, theattendantworks the treadle B releasing the spring-clutch and throwingthe main shaft out of gear. The nipper-rod D is simultaneously carriedback by its handle D, which runs in a longitudinal side slot, c, of theguidebarrelO. Awedge piece or bar, F, is crosswise inserted between thenippers E, and provided with curved levers or tongs F, which extend atone or both sides of the jaws toward the end of barrel 0, to be broughtwith their curved ends in contact with the V-shaped "collar orfricton-rollers G, applied adjustably at the front end of barrel 0. Theaction of barF on the nippers'E causes, by the pressure of the levers Fon collar G, the opening of the nippers, and allows the ready insertionof a new nail-plate in place of the one fed to the cutters. The V-shaped form of collar G admits of the opening of the nippers, whetherthe barlevers are in the upper or lower position, so that no time islost in adjusting them. The

treadle is then released, the spring-clutch engages instantly the mainshaft, and the weight carries the nipper-rod and nail-plate forward, andfeeds the latter to the cutter-knives. The intermittent rotary motion ofthe nail-plate, required for giving the same a semicircular turn for theregular cutting of the tapering nails in alternate direction, isobtained by cogwheel g, which turns on a rearward-projecting shaft, 1,of the lower part of the barrel-standard, and gears with the pinion gkeyed to the nipper-rod E. Oog-wheelg is cut atthe inner circumferenceor face with ratchet-teeth 9 into which the spring pawls or dogs catchalternately, producing the rotation of -wheel 9 in one direction.Spring-pawls f are pivoted to cross-pins f at the outer ends of arms fwhich turn on shaft 1, to which arms motion is imparted by theconnecting lever-rods e, which are pivoted to crank d of the main shaftand cross-pins f The inserting and rotating of the nail-plate,

and its feeding toward the knives, are thus achaving a cross-bar withcurved lever-arms or tongs, in combination with the V- shaped collar orfriction-rollers at front end of nipper-rod barrel, for producing theopening of the nippers and ready insertion of a new nail-plate,

substantially as and for the purposes described.

2. The combination of the nipper-rod having side-projecting handle withslotted guidebarrel, plate-holding nippers E, and V- shaped collar G,substantially as shown and described.

3. The combination of the main shaft B, by means of end crank d,lever-rods 0, arms f spring-pawls f, ratchet cog-Wheel g g, and pinion gwith the nipper-rod", to produce intermittent semi-rotary motion of thenipper-plate, in the manner described.

4. The combination of the main shaft B, nipper-rod l), pivotedguide-barrel O, crank-disk a, rod 1), crank d, levers e, ratchetcog-wheel g, and pinion 9 to produce simultaneously the turning of thenipper-rod and the reciproeating motion of the latter and thus theregular unobstructed feeding of the naiLplate, as shown and described.

WILLIAM HENRY FIELD.

Witnesses WM. H. Fox, A. A. AUSTIN.

